Carpet Cleaning FAQ

Why shouldn’t I just rent a machine and clean my carpet myself?

Low cost machines cannot produce heat or agitation so you need to compensate with an excessive amount of chemicals. More chemicals will leave your carpet with a substantial chemical residue. The carpet will feel sticky to the touch, cause fast re-soiling and be unhealthy for you.

Dissolving soil is only the first step in cleaning. Rinsing and removing that soil is essential for both your health and the end results. Low cost machines do not have enough suction power to recover most of the dissolved soil. The dirt will sink to the bottom of the carpet, saturating both its base and the pad underneath. Removing soil saturation from your carpet may require an expensive restoration cleaning.

People say that once a carpet is cleaned it takes days to dry and it re-soils shortly after?

30 years ago equipment was not strong enough to retrieve the liquid left in the carpet and the cleaning products were not well formulated. Then it took a long time to dry and left a lot of residue behind.

Now we use the world’s most powerful mobile cleaning plant. It will retrieve almost every single drop of water in your carpet. Our eco-friendly, healthy, non-toxic yet powerful cleaning products, (manufacturer approved to retain the stain resistance and warrantee) clean exceptionally well. They will leave your carpet soft to the touch, nearly dry, and residue free. Your carpet will also stay cleaner and last longer.

Your home will look clean and beautiful after our cleaning, and it will be healthier for you and your loved ones.

Both Shaw Industries and DuPont, the world’s largest carpet manufacturers, recommend carpeting to be cleaned once a year. They will void their warrantee if you wait longer then18 months without a cleaning.

How long will it take the carpet to dry?

This is the most commonly misunderstood part of cleaning. Anybody that gives you an exact number is not being truthful. Drying time varies greatly due to the density of fabric, humidity (sunny day or rainy day?), soiling, and method of cleaning. It is also influenced by the amount of water used in the rinsing process that we consider to be the most important part of cleaning.

After dissolving the soil a thorough rinsing reaches deep into the carpet and removes invisible soil that accumulates inside. If a carpet dries in an hour or so (as some companies claim), it means that not enough water was used and the cleaning results aren’t deep or healthy.

Drying time can take from as little as one hour under ideal conditions to as much as twenty four hours in wet winter months. However, since we offer all major cleaning methods, we can suit the cleaning to your needs. If fast drying is your main priority, we can make your carpet dry within an hour. Whatever you choose, we’ll provide you with free shoe covers (booties), so that you can walk on your carpet immediately.

How frequently should a carpet be cleaned?

“ …carpeting not cleaned and properly maintained has the potential to cause a variety of health problems inside the building environment.” “….every time carpets are emptied of their pollution build-up through professional cleaning, there is a health benefit.”
-Dr. Michael Berry of the Environmental Protection Agency. (EPA.)

The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) calls the carpet a “sink” meaning that everything drops to the bottom where your carpet is. The IICRC recommends that carpets in households with kids and or pets should be cleaned every 3 to 6 months and all others every 6 to 12 months.

Both Shaw Industries and DuPont, the world’s largest carpet manufacturers, recommend carpeting to be cleaned once a year. They will void their warrantee if you wait longer then18 months without a cleaning.

Expert Clean & Green recommends cleaning once a year. It’s easy to remember and every time you clean there is a health benefit for you.

What should I do if a stain or spot reappears after the cleaning?

In our experience 99.9% of spots that were removed do not come back. In the rare case that they do, please call us- If in the San Francisco area- (415) 242-2428, and if in the Grass Valley/Auburn area- (530) 955-1835, within two weeks of cleaning and we’ll resolve it.

There are two reasons for reappearing stains: Improper removal or a substantial spill prior to cleaning that saturated the glue base of your carpet, the pad and potentially the sub floor. This spill may wick back to the carpet as it dries.

We will make sure that all spots are properly removed. However, normal carpet cleaning is performed from the top of the carpet and we have no access to the pad or the sub floor. Pads are pretty much a sponge that can’t be cleaned if saturated, but needs to be replaced. If this substantial saturation that happened prior to our cleaning requires a return visit, we will charge for it.

What is the black line around the baseboard?

It is called filtration soil. Even in the cleanest person’s home there is air born pollutants. As air circulates through your home, it follows the path of least resistance, which is the small open space between the carpet and baseboards. The fine air born soil is filtered by the carpet as it goes through it, resulting in a black line.

Normal cleaning may lessen the appearance of the line, but will not completely remove it. Extra treatment for maximum possible removal (complete removal is not possible) is time consuming, will add to the cost and is not advisable, as the condition is still there and the lines will reappear.

Can you guarantee removal of all stains?

We truly wish we could. Unfortunately some stains are permanent. Bleach and acne medication will strip the carpets’ dye, and some cough medicine, markers and inks will leave permanent color.

While trying to remove stains inexperienced cleaners may cause permanent stains and or irreversible damage. Knowing when it’s safe to try to remove a stain can be the difference between a beautiful looking carpet and permanent damage.

Can you guarantee odor removal from my carpet? How about pet urine?

We wish we could. Unfortunately success depends on many factors. To name a few: What caused the odor, what material is the carpet made of, how long it has been exposed to it and did the substance penetrate the carpet’s padding?

Unlike the common misconception, deodorizing is not adding a scent (perfume) to the cleaning solution. That’s called masking and it’s the equivalent of spritzing on perfume while a shower is needed. Just ask any French queen or king that lived prior to the revolution and they’ll tell you- It doesn’t work.

Deodorizing is the process of removing the odor source and then neutralizing the odor molecules. There are various methods to accomplish it applying different principles, like encapsulating, pairing, oxidizing and natural digestive enzymes. We even carry fragrance free deodorizers.

Pet urine is completely different, as in addition to the odor issue there is also potential yellowing, weakening of the fabric, subfloor penetration and dye damage. Success again depends on various factors and the extent of the damage.

What we can offer you is realistic assessment and an honest, educated opinion.